Super duper easy exfoliation!

Hello darlings,
I have been dying to share this one with you guys! Very easy and perfect recipe for a quick facial!

You'll need:

• 2 tsps channa flour (besan or chickpeas flour)
• 1 tsp milk
• 1 tsp lemon/lime juice
• 1 drop of honey

Let's go!

1. Mix all the ingredients well.
2. Apply to clean, wet face.
3. Leave on for about 15 mins.
4. Apply warm water to your face and begin gently scrubbing the mask off in small circles.
5. Focus on blackheads and especially your T zone.
6. Rinse with cool water and pat dry.  

Perfect for prepping skin for makeup! Have fun dolls!

... Love and beauty, Virmala

Towel trick for quick and perfect hair mask

Hello darlings,
EUREKA!! I have recently struck gold! :D Ok, not really :P
It's a really neat trick that maximizes the efficiency of hair masks in no time at all!
Say for example, you apply a mask to your hair but you don't have all night to let it really work in; this simple method allows you to get 10 times the effect of the mask in less than an hour!

You'll need

• Small towel or just the right size to fully wrap hair in and tuck
• Boiling water

Magic:

1. Apply your choice of hair mask, oil treatment, etc throughout hair.
2. Slightly dampen the towel with the hot water, be very careful.
3. Give the towel a few seconds to fully soak up the water and cool off JUST a bit.
4. Wrap your hair turban style in the towel and leave it for at least 45mins. 
5. Take the towel off and rinse hair with shampoo and conditioner as normal.

Enjoy! :)

... Love and beauty, Virmala

Easy breezy shiny hair!

Hello dearlings!
One day I ran out of my regular hair mask products, so I ventured into my Mom's old stash of hair things! Lo and behold, I stumbled upon a tiny bottle of carrot oil! I decided to give it a try since my Mom swears by it!
I then came up with a great little recipe that ended up working better than anything I've tried before!

You'll need:

• Carrot oil
• Coconut oil
• Rosemary 
• Castor oil
• Vitamin E capsules (optional)

Let's go!

1. Pour the coconut oil into a small jar or container and place the rosemary in it, a batch of this can last a very long time. 
2. Massage a few drops of the carrot oil well onto the entire hair.
3. Use a dime sized amount of castor oil and mix it into a half teaspoon of the rosemary coconut oil. Warm the mixture slightly.
4. Coat the entire hair with the mixture, focusing on the roots, bald spots and split ends.
5. You can opt to use one 1000g Vit E capsule, pop it and massage the oil into the ends of the hair, coating it well and evenly.
6. Finally, you may wrap the hair in a warm damp towel and leave for 45mins; or wrap in clear plastic for 45mins; or just braid the hair and leave it overnight or for an hour!  
7. Rinse with a good shampoo and condition well!

Enjoy your shiny beautiful hair!

... Love and beauty, Virmala

Magical DIY blackhead removal

Hello darlings!

Quick story - so one day I looked in the mirror and to my HORROR I almost fainted to see blackheads on my poor little nose! I ran to the drawer for my trusty nose strips to find all gone! What was I going to do before a huge engagement that evening? Of course being a Pinterest freak, I immediately got on and looked up DIY blackhead removers and I found a couple of things with nutmeg. So, running out of time, I decided to whip up my own concoction (boy am I brave!). When I was done, I almost fainted once again, this time because EVERY SINGLE BLACKHEAD WAS COMPLETELY GONE! It was exactly like magic!

So, let's waste no more time and get rid of YOUR blackheads now! :)

You'll need:

• 1 tbsp grated nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp milk

The magic is about to begin:

• Start with a washed and dried clean face.
• Combine nutmeg and milk in a small bowl. Mixture should be almost like a paste, just not as smooth because of the grated nutmeg.
• Use the mixture on the face, gently scrubbing with the fingertips in small circles. You may do this only on the affected spots or the entire face if you wish (avoiding the eyes).
• Massage for about 2 minutes and then rinse off with cool water. Remember, DO NOT scrub hard, you do not want to damage your skin, but gently exfoliate the blackheads.
• After rinsing, pat dry and marvel at yourself in the mirror!

Now, do you believe in magic?

... Love and beauty, Virmala.

The powerful powdered milk DIY face mask

Hello darlings!

With the supermarket shelves being filled with tonnes of brands of ready to drink milk, we all probably forget at times, that powdered milk does exist! More interestingly, I'm also about to tell you that you can not only drink it, but...(dum dum dum) USE IT ON YOUR FACE (GASP!!). Yup, news flash - it is soo good for your skin. Remember flawless Cleopatra? She was specially known for her beautiful skin which as you can guess by now, was as a result of her milk baths. I dare you to try this and I promise you, you'll be sticking with this for a long time! (P.S: Perfect for a quick fix before a date.)

You'll need:

• 2 tbsps powdered milk (instant)
• 1 tbsp warm water
• 1/2 tsp honey (optional)

Egyptian time:

• Ensure your face is washed and dried clean. Clip your hair back because you DO NOT want milky sticky bangs!
• In a small bowl, combine milk with water and and mix quickly. Add honey and check consistency - should be paste-like and smooth; if not, add more milk or water accordingly. Remember to mix out all the lumps.
• Apply generously over face. 
• However, if you're like me and always manage to have excess mixture, don't throw it away! Keep applying over and over until your bowl is empty. Layers will dry quickly and allow you to keep adding more on top of them.
• Leave to dry for about 20-25 mins and then wash thoroughly. Pat dry.
• You can do this about twice a week.

Beautiful glowing skin is only 25 mins away.

... Love and beauty, Virmala.

The "oh so infamous" OCM (Oil Cleansing Method)

Hello darlings!

Sooo, the OCM craze has taken over everywhere, from Pinterest to forwarded emails, and of course I had to try it! After about 2 weeks of intermittent use, I was satisfied with the results - glowing and smoother skin. However, I added my slight to twist to the procedure which totally improved the results and I am sure, you will also be pleasantly surprised after trying it out.

For those who may not be familiar with the OCM method, it's the use of oil to dissolve excess oil and remove impurities from the face. It may sound a bit twisted at first, because you ARE adding oil to a usually already oily type face (apparently my scientifically blessed boyfriend confirms the theory to me, a law student, that "like dissolves like" - meaning that oil dissolves oil) but I promise it will totally shock you! Remember to do this at night before bed and when you're just starting, try to use it every OTHER night. Now, there are a few combinations of oils but the recipe that I am giving works the best so far!

You'll need:

• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp castor oil
• Small bottle
• Small towel
• 1 tsp aloe vera gel

Let's begin the transformation:

• Start with a clean, dry face. Pull your hair back with a band or clip.
• Pour oils in bottle and shake well. (usually lasts 1-2 weeks)
• Apply half of a dime sized amount all over the face and  neck. Massage well.
• Soak the towel in warm water and squeeze slightly. Place over face for a few seconds, wash and repeat. 
• Wipe the oil off with the warm towel after repeating the above steps 3 times.
• Apply aloe vera gel over entire face and go to sleep!

Happy transformations!

... Love and beauty, Virmala.

Miracle DIY Hair Mask

Hello darlings!

In my extensive search for beauty tips and tricks over the past year, I have been discovering tonnes of new things that of course after trying every single one of them, I am happy to share the ones that actually work perfectly! However, I have been playing around with things you can find at home and of course PANTRY (the boo says I empty the house's food supply and grocery shop for my face and hair HA!) and have put together some really effective recipes for both hair and facial purposes!



Today, I must share my 4 part MIRACLE HAIR MASK (sitting here running my hands through my so-amazing-I-think-the hair-fairy-stopped-by-last-night hair!) and hope that you too can bask in the new found hair glory that's only an hour away! This mask is super excellent for dry, damaged and colour treated hair; or for a quick shine! Note that the order of application steps are crucial to the outcome of the mask, so relax and pamper yourself!

(This is actually what my hair looks like after the mask is washed off and hair, dried.)


You will need:

• 1 tbsp coconut oil 
• 1 tsp castor oil
• 1 tbsp aloe vera gel (raw)
• 1 tsp honey

It's magic time:

• Start with dry hair (it does not matter whether it's clean, flat ironed or anything at all). 
• Warm the coconut oil and distribute evenly throughout entire head. 
• Massage castor oil with fingertips only at the roots (else you'll end up looking like a frizz ball, noooo!).
• Apply aloe vera gel starting from the roots and end off completely saturating the ends of your hair.
• Finally, coat as much of the hair as possible with the honey, which acts as a sealant to let the magic take place.
• If you're in a rush, opt for a shower cap or plastic wrap and keep the mask on for an hour and rinse with shampoo and warm water, and end off with a good conditioner and a cold rinse.
• However, if you want a deep conditioning, you can leave the mask on overnight, before your regular wash the next day. 

Here's hoping you too can enjoy the wonderful, smooth, soft and heavenly hair that I am currently being distracted by! 

... Love and beauty, Virmala